


The Couch

by overratedantihero



Category: Green Lantern - All Media Types, The Flash - All Media Types
Genre: Cuddling, Lion King references, M/M, self indulgent fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-18
Updated: 2017-06-18
Packaged: 2018-11-15 19:26:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11237619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/overratedantihero/pseuds/overratedantihero
Summary: After Hal's incessant use of his power ring puts Barry in a tight spot, Hal's condemned to the couch.





	The Couch

Hal Jordan was never going to get used to Midwestern winters. California didn't have weather, at least not in Coast City. Coast City was all sunshine all of the time, beaches and no humidity. But Central City? Central City got cold. Hal had to buy coats just to visit Barry. Barry sometimes had to pry the ring away from Hal. Sure he glowed so bright that he lit Barry's apartment up like a nuclear fallout, but at least the ring kept him warm.

But Hal had to stop wearing the ring inside Barry's home after a neighbor called into the local news and claimed that Barry was harboring kryptonite. Bruce insisted that half the Justice League help Barry clean out any hero-related evidence ahead of the warranted police search that followed soon after. Someone (Hal) then leaked to Oliver that Barry kept stolen case files in his apartment and Oliver never let Barry hear the end of the 'hypocritical irony.' Which is how someone (Hal) ended up sleeping on the couch.

And the couch was cold.

"Bar! Bar, it's cold!" Hal whined from the couch. Barry shot him a _look_ from the living room's threshold before tossing him another throw blanket from the linen closet. Hal caught it with his face.

"Bar," Hal whined, voice muffled by the blanket draped over his head. "Sleep on the couch with me."

Hal tugged the blanket away just in time to see Barry's softened expression. But then Barry caught himself and he quickly adopted a stern air again.

"I'm going to sleep, Hal. In my bed. Because I'm tired. Because I had half the superhero community in my apartment on Tuesday and then half of the city's law enforcement in here on Wednesday. Most of whom I know. So on top of their incessant teasing, your favorite anarcho-communist hasn't left me alone since. Goodnight, sweet dreams, and if you're still cold, feel free to raid the linen closet," Barry murmured, already walking towards his room.

"Hate to see you go, love to watch you walk away!" Hal called after him. He could've sworn he saw Barry's shoulders shake with a chuckle, but he couldn't be sure.

Hal arranged himself on the couch, layering blankets and snuggling in close to the cushions. Still, the chill clung to his bones and wind whipped at the windows, keeping him from anything resembling sleep. Especially since Barry was a room over. Barry whose temp ran like a space heater. And whose fluttering heartbeat sounded much more soothing than winter wind.

But Barry said no, and no meant no, and Hal was not about to upset the brightest spot in his life. Especially not when that brightest spot just went through several days of having his privacy violated because Hal had to light up indoors.

So Hal fell into a light sleep that eventually grew deep enough for dreams about snow. Which gave way to /heat/ and /weight/ and...

"Barry?" Hal mumbled, blinking sleep from his eyes. "Whatcha doin'?"

Barry nuzzled his face against Hal's chest and Hal hummed, limbs too heavy to do much else.

"Couldn't sleep. Missed you," Barry murmured.

"Coulda just let me come to bed," Hal said. "Dunno if your couch is the most comfy option." Hal tossed an arm over Barry, siphoning his heat. The speedster ran wonderfully hot, and had somehow managed to slip under Hal's layered blanket fortress.

"Nope, still not happy with you," Barry murmured. "I can handle the League in my apartment, I can handle the CCPD. But I'm mad you told Oliver about those files. You know why I take them home sometimes."

"Yeah, so does Ollie. He's not actually holdin' it against you." Hal buried his nose in Barry's hair.

"Don't care," Barry murmured. "It's the principle of the thing."

Hal began to stroke Barry's back, and Barry hummed. "So now we both suffer the couch?" Hal asked, even as Barry arched his back for more contact. "I don't think that's how this is supposed to work."

Barry didn't respond. Instead, he nuzzled his face against Hal's pec and Hal snorted.

"Having fun, Bar?" Hal asked.

"You're so penetrable," Barry noted, nose prodding Hal's skin as he snuggled closer. Hal gave him a funny look.

"I know. I'd figured after last night we both knew."

Barry rolled his eyes and sat up to meet Hal's gaze. "Not what I meant. Your skin. Your skin's soft and vulnerable, with normal platelets and a normal healing time. I worry sometimes."

"Nightmare?" Hal asked. Barry was prone to nightmares. Hal didn't dream, not really, but he'd woken up to Barry trembling or shouting or fretting enough times to recognize the aftermath of Barry's dreams. For the most part, Barry appeared unphased by the stressful nature of his heroics and by the breadth of his losses. Barry especially behaved nonchalantly about Hal's extended absences and frequent disappearances, but then again, Barry tended towards selflessness. He wasn't the type to burden Hal with his misgivings when Hal was entangled in his off-world responsibilities. It usually took a nightmare for him to admit that he worried after Hal.

Barry nodded.

"Well, first thing's first: I am not soft. Poke me. That's all muscle."

Barry did poke him, but Barry cheated by poking him in his side. Hal yelped.

"Muscle and nerve endings," Barry smirked while Hal wiggled.

"You're ticklish too, I just don't want to make you vibrate through the floor," Hal warned. "And second thing's second: I may be human, but I have the most powerful weapon in probably the universe. So jot that down."

"Consider it jotted," Barry replied, bemused.

"I like that you worry about me. It reminds me that you care and that you're here and that you haven't given up on me yet. But I don't want you losing sleep over me."

Barry shrugged, nuzzling Hal's neck. "You seem to be perfectly content with me losing sleep if it means I crawl onto the couch with you."

"I'd be more content if you'd let me back in the bed," Hal promised.

Barry just hummed, and so Hal decided to follow a different train of thought.

"I worry about you too, you know. Who catches you mid-fight when I'm not around?"

"Diana. Clark. Batman, when he has his plane. One time Arthur jumped and caught me. We make it work."

When Barry caught sight of Hal's facial expression he quickly added, "But I prefer it when it's you."

Hal wasn't possessive. He didn't believe in ownership over other human beings. But that didn't stop images of Spooky catching Barry in his stupid, armored, fetish-geared arms. Hal wasn't possessive, but he did tighten his grip around Barry.

"Okay, fine. You got me there. But I still have a forcefield and you don't so. Worry 'bout yourself, speedster."

"Make me, Lantern," Barry smirked.

Hal grinned and then swiftly and with only some struggle, flipped their entangled bodies so that Barry was beneath him. The weight of the blankets against Hal's back pushed him that much closer to Barry.

"Is that a challenge?" Hal asked. His cocky smile slipped when Barry burst into laughter. "What?" Hal asked, not defensively.

"That's a line in the Lion King! I thought you were quoting it on purpose!"

Barry oophed when Hal dropped on top of him, but his residual chuckles still shook them both. Hal buried his face in Barry's neck.

"You are the worst," Hal muttered. "Mufasa said that to Scar, you mood ruiner."

"I'm sorry, love. Couldn't help it; I recently watched the Lion King with the kids down at the rec center as the Flash. You're lucky I haven't been humming the soundtrack."

Hal hummed the Circle of Life into Barry's skin.

"Right, like that," Barry murmured. After a pause he adds, "Would you feel better about me ruining your cute flirting thing if we--"

"My what?" Hal lifted his head to raise his eyebrows at Barry. "My 'cute flirting thing?'"

Barry blushed. "I don't know! Your flirting thing! That thing you do where you flirt!"

"Bar, just say flirting."

"Flirting?"

Hal started laughing and Barry wiggled indignantly.

"I was gonna ask if you wanted to transition to the actual bed instead of the couch," Barry dangled. Hal stopped laughing immediately, and Barry smirked. "But the couch is suddenly feeling very comfortable."

Hal looked at him pensively before leaning forward and whispering in his ear, "What do you want me to do? Dress in drag and do the hula?"

Barry pulled them both off the couch when he fell off, laughing. 

**Author's Note:**

> If it's not fluff and if it doesn't feature some reference to Oliver Queen, then I didn't write it.


End file.
